Wegmans pulls the white tablecloth on its restaurant, changing formats. Is Syracuse next up?

Dick Blume / The Post StandardColleen Wegman, presidents of Wegmans Food Markets Inc., tries a sample in the DeWitt Wegmans when Wegman and her father, Wegmans CEO Danny Wegman, were in DeWitt in September. Handing Wegman the sample is Soapy Song, a cook at the DeWitt store. Syracuse, NY -- Supermarket powerhouse Wegmans is making its moves, directly and indirectly, on the wine and liquor market in New York state and otherwheres. At the same time, the company is also addressing its approach to Wegmans-operated restaurants. I told you about the new one in Pennsylvania. Here's a little something happening closer to home. Read on...

From Supermarket News:

Wegmans to Open Stand-Alone Restaurant

PITTSFORD, N.Y. — Wegmans Food Markets next month will open a stand-alone restaurant called the Next Door Bar & Grill across the street from its store on Monroe Avenue here, according to a report in the Brighton-Pittsford Post.

The new bar and grill will feature an outdoor patio, and “the decor, the atmosphere and the menu will be relaxed, comfortable and fun,” Wegmans spokeswoman Jo Natale told the Post.

The new bar and grill will be the first stand-alone restaurant concept operated by Wegmans, and it appears to be a departure from the white-tablecloth atmosphere of Tastings, the restaurant Wegmans has operated in its Pittsford location since 2002.

Tastings will close when the Next Door Bar & Grill opens, and much of the restaurant staff will be transfered to the new location, including General Manager Alex Berentzen and Executive Chef Chris Brandt, according to the report.

My comments: The formal setup of Wegmans' Tastings restaurant always puzzled me. Perhaps it was the one-time Fortune 500 attitude and affluence of Pittsford and the greater Rochester market. I think this new concept is the more mature, and smarter, approach for Wegmans. It first with the times, it fits with the newer "leaner pricing" attitude of Wegmans, plus the corporate "family" image. It also, on paper, seems to be a concept that could carry well into other markets, and looks especially fitting for DeWitt, in the Wegmans plaza, where the region's flagship store sits -- as does the new Liquor City store, now associated with the Wegman family. Watch for cross-promotions, coming to that store soon. And, perhaps, a restaurant, after the shakedown run in Pittsford.

On to...

You:

Lee: "As a Cortland resident for 12 years here's what I've learned about Walmart and such to update your post:

- Bennie Rd is moving North to the other side of the Senior Citizen home, get a light at the intersection of NY-13, and be the access road for the Walmart Supercenter

- Current speculation is the current Walmart will turn into a Lowe's supercenter, though I have yet to see anything official and Lowe's balance sheet doesn't look good enough to support that type of store in a marginal area like Cortland

- The new building on NY-281 across the street from Luker Rd is a KFC. There was a sign up advertising as such, but has since disappeared. The exterior is identical to recent KFCs around the area.

- A&W may have been around for a while, but the current build is a lot more recent. The original one was gutted by fire some time ago ... and the "new" one was made up to look like the original.

Remind your readers that if they want traffic to flow properly along NY-281 & NY--13 from Walmart to I-81 to lean on the NYS DOT signal group, which for Cortland is based in Syracuse. From the looks of it the lights are not linked and can lead to some nasty traffic backups if the timing isn't set up exactly right.

BN: That is the looooooongest traffic project in the history of ever. A perfectly finished right-hand lane in both directions is STILL blocked by cones, MONTHS after it seemed ready to go. They must be getting paid by the hour, all of them, because that thing looked like it could have been buttoned up in early September. Sheesh. And? Thanks for the info.

CNYretail: "That 'ancient' Wal-Mart in Cortlandville will be history not long after the new hyphenless Supercenter opens down the road. A quick check of the property records in Cortland County shows that Lowe's has owned the current Wal-Mart site since 2004. Shows you how long they've been planning new digs down there. Along that discussion, I've had several individuals tell me that Wal-Mart won't build a new store unless they believe the profits will pay off the site development costs in two years. Hence the cheap building that is old and outmoded in 15-20 years. It's paid for and not a loss to build a brand new store on another site.

"The building on Route 281 in front of Tops is a KFC, I recall hearing.

"Sonic is nothing special, IMHO. Greasy, bland food, sold more on the nostalgia of a 50's drive-in restaurant. This isn't exactly summer, so I'm not surprised about Poolboy's observation. Perhaps they need to look at what some of the Dairy Queens in northern NY did/do -- they shut down for the winter. This is NY for crying out loud, not Florida or southern California.

"As for P&C/Penn Traffic, I have to believe that if they are in as bad of shape as some say they are, none of the potential suitors named by Burt Flickinger in your other article will want to buy them now. They'll wait for the liquidation and cherry-pick only the stores they want. Even with the store closings that they have done, some of their stores are still marginal contributors to the bottom line. They're also too small to effectively compete. Of the chains mentioned in the other story, Tops, Weis, and Shop Rite (Wakefern) would most likely be the interested parties. Price Chopper has too much overlap (and I doubt they can afford to shutter the overlapping stores). Giant Eagle, Hannaford (Delhaize), and SuperValu would all have to establish distribution facilities in the area, that the others would not. Heck, Shop Rite already is in Watertown and Rochester with their Price Rite stores. If I were Price Chopper, I'd be very concerned about Shop Rite entering the market... they offer great sale prices, and do a phenomenal volume of sales because of it (and Price Chopper knows it -- they compete with them in the lower Hudson Valley and CT). Just what the grocery market in CNY needs."

BN: Astute observations, as usual. I believe someone will swoop in for a part of the package. I've heard the Town Center store has already been gobbled it up, and I'm guessing Price Chopper. They've wanted that location for forever, and really need an entry point in that part of town. It's perfect. There will be more cherry-picking, and it will likely come before a court auction of the remainders of P&C. That auction is scheduled for latter in the month. I believe one or more of those chains you (and Burt) mentioned, with Tops grabbing Western New York (my guess) and perhaps parts of Pennsylvania. Shop Rite needs a store in this market, and it wouldn't surprise me if there is a bidding war for the Towne Center store between them and Chopper. Whatever happens, there will be a lot of storeshed and a lot of pain.

Acknight: In regard to Hannaford/Delhaize, I'm not certain they would -- Hannaford is already in the North Country (there's a store near Salmon Run Mall) and in the Utica area (closest store to Syracuse, according to their locator, is ~30-40 miles away in Clinton). Weis is a bit further, now in the Binghamton area; Tops still comes as close as Cortland, which isn't that far off as well."

Ivnws4u: "RE: cnyretail: No problem for whoever buys P&C -- should that happen -- since there is a distribution center for that chain and would likely be included in a deal.

"RE: acknight: Remember years ago Tops was in CNY and would be a likely contender under their new owners. I do think some less profitable stores would be eliminated, however, and they might not be what you might think based on store size, since it's the value per sf that counts. Look at the Wegmans on Pond Street as an example."

Cusefan685: "RE: P&C/PT -- Look for a name that most people probably haven't heard much about in these parts. Bozzuto's. They are a grocery warehouse out of Cheshire, Conn., that supplies independents (IGAs and whatnot - some in our area). They currently supply throughout NY & New England down to the Maryland area. They just last year took over supplying Big Y out of Mass., a 50+ store chain that C&S used to supply & also opened another warehouse. They are a very healthy private company run very well by Michael Bozzuto and they are positioned and ready to make big moves in the grocery world. They also run seven corporate stores throughout CT under the Adams Super Foods banner, and a discount food center. They have been in talks with PT on a buyout if the price is right..."

BN: Interesting...

g7mch: "

Bob..Hi. CNY native in PA here....Have you heard anything about the electronics retailer HHGREGG making any moves in Upstate NY area, too? Some fresh competition on the way for that Goliath Best Buy? I recently read they're buying closed Circuit City stores. I never heard of them but they do sound formidable. They sell everything Best Buy does, plus mattresses!?"

BN: I HAVE been keeping up with HHGregg's moves into the remnants of CC. But here in CNY, we're keeping our eye on another chain: Ultimate Electronics. Stand by.

jack7957: "I don't remember when Kmart and Big Lots started opening on Thanksgiving, but I do remember Ames being open on Thanksgiving back in 1991, since I was working there at the time. All employees were required to work that day, there were two shifts, morning or afternoon/evening. I don't remember the hours they were open, just that I missed out on the big dinner at my grandparents since I would have to eat and run, if Grandma got dinner on the table in time (highly unlikely)."

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